Patrick Nikodem

About

Profile

Donated to:

Ma Guijun (马贵军)
$20 of $240 donated
Sichuan, China
I was born eighteen years ago in Shuhe Village. My village is located at a very high altitude. As a result, few types of crops grow and transportation is difficult. There is only one narrow path for livestock to walk on when going up and down the mountains. Thanks to the government's aid, in 2004, I completed elementary school at a school that was 20 km away. In 2008, I hope to graduate from Shuhe Middle School. But I am very afraid of what will happen once I graduate. Without external financial aid (hopefully from the US), I will not be able to pay the school fees associated with high school enrollment and studies. If given the opportunity, I will work extremely hard and use my grades to pay back my supporters. I will remain indebted to the donors that sponsor me. I would like to thank my parents, teachers, and the various organizations that have helped me get to where I am today. (Translated from Guijin’s autobiographical sketch)

Longfeng Ran (冉龙凤)
$380 of $380 donated
Sichuan, China
My family has endured many unforeseen obstacles. My sister passed away when I was six years old. In the past decade, I have been through many misfortunes that others seldom experience. My father’s leg was injured in an accident recently, but even before the accident, my family had barely enough income. My mother’s physical condition is failing, and my family has reached a point of destitution. We live on farming and raising pigs, and our main source of income was my father’s job. I cannot continue my education because my family does not have enough money right now. My brother has already dropped out of school. I never complained when I was doing housework and farmwork for the family, but when my parents told me that they could no longer afford my tuition fee, I felt distressed and depressed. I wish I can support my family, but I feel that I would not be able to shoulder much weight as a young woman in the family. My parents had been saving money for me to study, and learning w...

Shangui Yan (严善贵)
$150 of $150 donated
Sichuan, China
My family has a couple acres of field and farmland. Due to the recent dry spell, the output of these fields is not much. My younger sister and I are the only two children in my family, and our parents love us so much. My father is a farmer, as well as my disabled mother. The day I started school, my mother broke down into tears because she realized that she could never afford to pay tuition for her children to fully complete their education. For the majority of my sister's and my life, all our clothes were given to us by kind friends. When I was in fourth grade, I got a disease that forced my family to use the little money that we had saved to pay for my medical expenses. My father even sold his own blood to get money for me. Luckily, I was treated and cured. I used to be number one in my class, but after I went to middle school, my performance dropped noticeably. I lost confidence and courage, becoming unsure about my future life and studies. I didn’t know if my family could ...

Li Zheng (郑丽)
$205 of $205 donated
Sichuan, China
My family relies on our annual harvest to support all of our expenses. However, due to recent droughts, my parents have had to spend money to buy water for our crops. Due to this new cost in crop harvesting, my brother and I borrowed money from relatives in order to pay for tuition. Sometimes when my parents fall sick, they choose not to receive medical treatment in order to afford our tuition. They normally wait out the illness and hope that they will recover soon, instead of spending the family’s resources that they have reserved to pay for our tuition. But since my older brother and I both have excellent grades at school, my parents deem the sacrifices to be worth it. I recall one instance at school that made my poverty all the more apparent in comparison to my fellow students. When I first entered middle school, my teacher told me that I could not receive any of the new textbooks because my tuition had not been paid in full. Although unwilling and embarrassed, I passed the new...

Zhiqing Lv (吕志清)
$220 of $220 donated
Sichuan, China
I was born into a loving family, and although my parents had to labor strenuously, I still had the opportunity of beginning elementary school at age 5. However, my good fortune did not last long. In 2000, my mother passed away as a result of poor health and over-exhaustion from laboring in the fields. In order to give my mother a proper burial, my family spent nearly all of our savings. We even had to sell our land to cover the cost. After the funeral was over, we were only left with a shabby house. My grandmother broke her leg earlier this year, and thus became entirely dependent on my family. As a result, my father’s burdens have become even heavier. I am extremely grateful for today’s opportunity of receiving education grants through the Peach Foundation. I hope that I will be able to receive donations so that my father will be less tired everyday. (Translated from Zhiqing’s autobiographical sketch)

Yincong Fan (范银聪)
$250 of $250 donated
Sichuan, China
My parents did not receive much education, and only my father can be considered semi-literate. Given their background, my parents both understand the importance of education and hope that one day, their children will be able to stand proudly in society. When I was in third grade, a major thunderstorm damaged the roof of my house. The next day, my uncle came to help fix the roof, but unfortunately, slipped and fell six meters to the ground. After being examined at the hospital, the doctors deemed that immediate surgery would be necessary to save my uncle’s life. In despair, I had to discontinue my education to help pay for my uncle’s medical expenses. A year later, my father intended for me to return to finish elementary school. However, my mother was diagnosed with lithiasis and needed me to stay home to help out with farm work. I would often cry when seeing other children going to school while I had to stay home. But I never allowed my tears to be seen by my parents because I k...

Nutritious Lunch Program
$500 of $500 donated
Rift Valley, Kenya
Provide a school community with a nutritious school lunch program for one month that will increase student attendance and participation in class, decrease malnutrition, and improve child health.

Dan Yuan (袁丹)
$435 of $435 donated
Shaanxi, China
I am a student from a poor family of a mountainous region, and I am very lucky to be able to attend high school in the county center. My family is from Yangpingguan, where the economy is very backward. My parents are hardworking farmers who don’t have fixed employment. Each year my father leaves the village to find temporary work, while my mother remains to farm. My mother works very hard and suffers a great deal, yet she is still very attentive to my brother and me, especially with regards to our schoolwork. Although my brother’s grades on the 2008 college entrance examinations were not ideal, he has chosen not to abandon his studies, a decision my parents respect. Even though our family is poor, my parents still allow my brother to continue to attend school. In addition to the costly tuition of 5000 yuan per semester, there are also high living expenses, and as a result my family’s financial situation has become more and more pressing. During the May 12th earthquake, my fami...

Yuling Bai (白玉玲)
$440 of $440 donated
Shaanxi, China
My family’s financial resources are very limited and we do not have any fixed income. The whole family’s life depends on my father’s temporary jobs outside, but my father has some physical disability and his health condition has been poor this year. My mother stays at home to look after my young brother and takes care of a little crop, but the harvest is not enough for family consumption. Nowadays, my tuition becomes another great burden for my parents. It is very hard for my family to afford the costs. I sincerely hope to that the Fund could help ease my family’s financial difficulties. According to my grandmother, my father was burned by fire when he was young. The four fingers on his left hand were badly burnt; his head was also injured. So he always had disability. I cannot imagine how he managed to get through the cold winters, so I have always admired my father very much. Nevertheless, my father always worked very hard for the family despite his deteriorating health. I...

Kuteesa Abu
$0 of $360 donated
Kampala, Uganda
I have attended Peace Nursery and Primary School from the time I was old enough to enroll in Nursery School. Five years ago my parents died. Since then the School has provided me a place to live, food, medical care, and covered all my educational expenses. I live in a one-room dormitory with 14 other boys. One of the teachers stays in the dorm with us. On holidays I travel to the Village of Mityana to visit my grandmother and see my sisters and brothers. I am the top student in my class. I like to study and am very disciplined. Social studies is my favorite subject. I will graduate from Peace Nursery and Primary School in December 2009. I want to enroll in secondary school and then college but this will depend on finding funding for my education. I would appreciate your help. Note: Peace Nursery and Primary School is a private school serving orphans and other children unable to afford the costs of attending public schools. As such, it receives no funding from public sources. L...

Nantume Ivy
$360 of $360 donated
Kampala, Uganda
My parents ran a small shop in Makindye (a suburb of Kampala, Uganda). Mrs. Amina Bbaaale used to shop there. When my parents got sick from AIDS, I wondered what would become of me. I expected that like my parents I, too, would soon be dead because I am HIV positive. Mrs. Bbaale told my parents I would be welcome to live with her and attend Peace Nursery and Primary School. Every month the Headmaster takes me to a clinic to get shots. The shots are really helping and I look forward to a long life. People who knew me before I came to Peace School do not recognize me now because my condition has improved so much. I would not be alive if not for Peace School. My life has turned around. I am so thankful for Mrs. Bbaale. The family compound has been converted into a school that serves those like me who cannot pay school fees. Members of her family operate the school, teach, and somehow raise the money to keep the school going. There is a Girls Dormitory at the school but because...

Mulungi Zaina
$0 of $360 donated
Kampala, Uganda
I have been a student at Peace school for six years. I started in the Primary 1 class. I used to live at home with my parents and come to school only for classes. But my mother died in childbirth and my father was killed in South African while he was working there. So now I live at Peace School. My brother also lives here; he is in the Primary 4 class. And my sister is here; she is in the Kindergarten class. My father was a friend of the Bbaale family who run Peace Nursery and Primary School. During holidays we go to my grandmother’s house. I am a Catholic and I go to St. Luke’s Catholic Church on Sundays. In our school we have Catholics, Protestants, Born Agains, and Muslims. We all get along very well. I am a happy person and a hard worker. I don’t mind doing chores. I help with cleaning the school and washing dishes. The food is good at the school and so are the teachers. We eat matoke, fish, rice, potatoes, beans, and cassava. My favorite subject is Social Studies...

Yaoqin Yang (杨耀琴 )
$250 of $250 donated
Yunnan, China
I have a younger brother who is also studying at the Taian Middle School, so there are only two people in my family who are working, my mother and my father. In addition, my mother is getting older and her health is deteriorating, so sometimes she can’t work. There have even been times when our income has not been enough to pay for her medicine. My father works long hours in the fields, but still there are years when we can’t afford to buy anything, since we have little land and low income. Our family has no income except what is earned from farming. Sometimes my family can’t afford to pay my living expenses, and this becomes a problem. Even though their lives are so difficult, my parents have never said they don’t want my brother and me to go to school. They only continue to say that we only have one chance to do well in school, so we must do our best and not miss this opportunity. These words really touch my heart. Since the school is far from home and our parents have no ...

Support Solar Meninos de Luz School
$500 of $500 donated
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
Solar Meninos de Luz is both a school and a philanthropic civic organization founded in 1991 to provide educational and social support to 400 children and teenagers living in a Rio de Janeiro slum area. Solar’s vision or mission is to educate children holistically—not just academically, but also culturally, physically and morally—in order to provide them with the same opportunities as students from more affluent social areas. It is impossible to emphasize the importance of Solar in the students’ lives, as they receive comprehensive education along with other important aspects of social care, including access to a free medical and dental clinic, a community library and extracurricular activities such as music, theater and English lessons. The school is currently in need of serious refurbishment and development, but two of its greatest needs are providing nutritious food for its students (aged 3 months to 18 years old)—who remain at school from 8am to 5pm—as well as paying...

Solo Village School Repair
$360 of $500 donated
Bougouni, Mali
Originally constructed ten years ago, the school in the rural village of Solo in Mali, West Africa has severely deteriorated due to lack of quality structural supplies and the abuse of harsh weather conditions. The building was built with mud bricks covered by a thin layer of cement. The cement on the floors and ceilings is beginning to crack and break, and in one classroom the broken concrete has left a large hole in the floor, leaving the classroom unusable if the ground is wet from rain. Another classroom has a make-shift roof of poor-quality tin that leaks during the rainy season. The tin roof needs to be replaced by a durable cement roof and the floors are in need of durable cement to prevent cracking and flooding.

Flavia Tissera
$584 of $545 donated
Córdoba, Argentina
Flavia was abandoned by her mother and father when she was three months old. She was raised by Irma, a distant relative of her real parents. Irma has full custody of Flavia and loves her like her own daughter. Irma’s husband past away during 2005 and to support the family, they receive Irma’s pension and a small sum of child benefit from the government. Flavia is a very diligent student and – despite their poor living conditions – Irma does everything she can in order to support her with her studies.

Concepcion Xep
$190 of $300 donated
Solola, Guatemala
Concepción and her family are from the small city of Santiago, Atitlán. Santiago is the epicenter of the Mayan Tzutujil group, and Tzutujil is Concepción’s mother tongue. Like the majority of indigenous women, Concepción’s mother never attended school, nor did her father. Both are illiterate and unable to speak Spanish. Concepción’s mother married at 16 and began having children at 17. The predictable yet devastating cycle of poverty has produced 9 living children (2 that died under the age of 2). It took everything that both Concepción and the family had to get her through the 6th grade. Concepción is starting the 8th grade this year and is in her second year of the Starfish One by One program. Starfish One by One provides Concepción with a partial scholarship that ensures her access to secondary school (this is provided by an individual donor). This small scholarship is a critical component of Concepción’s ongoing education. However, Concepción still faces many d...